Showplace Antique Center

New York is full of fantastic museums and attractions, but if you are a little light in the wallet and are looking for something that is basically a museum, New York still has you covered. There are a ton of fantastic flea markets and antique malls displaying a dizzying array of curios, knickknacks, relics, and occasional works of art. For my money, and I do spend it from time to time, it’s hard to beat Manhattan’s Showplace Antique Center located at 40 W 25th Street (between 5th & 6th Ave).

It’s four stories of wonder, an absolute pandemonium of crystal and brass, art deco and 50s kitsch. Row after row, floor after floor of everything from vintage lingerie, to Victrolas to monkey butler statues to creepy Victorian era dolls. The menagerie is the equal, in my opinion, of many of the city’s museums, and if you are a fan of eye-popping curiosities and shops where you have a pretty good chance of finding an enchanted monkey paw or cursed grimoire, Showplace is well worth the hour or two you can spend marveling at their wares. And who knows — you might even come away with a pink crystal chandelier or a silk dressing gown.

Special thanks: I would not have known about this place had not The Trad written about it here and here.